House Votes To Overturn Trump Order On Federal Worker Bargaining Rights

Lawrence Jackson (Executive Office of the President of the United States), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

WASHINGTON — The House voted Thursday night to undo a 2025 Trump executive order that slashed collective bargaining rights for federal workers. The rollback passed 231-195 — after supporters employed a discharge petition to bring it to the floor, sidestepping GOP leadership’s control of the agenda.

Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

Bipartisan Push Carries the Bill

About 20 Republicans joined all House Democrats in advancing the repeal, a rare bipartisan step that reflected concerns about the executive order’s impact on federal workers.

Republicans like Brian Fitzpatrick and Mike Lawler defended their votes by pointing to basic workplace representation, saying federal employees deserve a real voice in negotiations. But almost none of them called out Trump by name — a sign of just how politically delicate this vote was.

What the Executive Order Did

Trump’s order, issued in March 2025, ended collective bargaining rights for employees at several federal agencies, with a focus on departments tied to national security. Roughly 600,000 workers were affected.

Unions called the move the largest act of “union-busting” in U.S. history. Supporters of the repeal said the order stretched well beyond legitimate security concerns and stripped workers of rights that had stood for decades.

Fox News continues:

The bill was led by Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, who got a vote on his measure by filing a discharge petition. It’s designed to force a vote on legislation over the wishes of leadership provided it gets support from a majority of House lawmakers.

The bill, called the Protect America’s Workforce Act, is aimed at repealing a March 2025 executive order by Trump. 

During debate on the bill Thursday afternoon, House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said undoing Trump’s executive order was akin to encouraging “more work-from-home policies for our federal employees,” which he said Americans voted against when they elected Trump and Republicans to lead in Washington.

“It is important to remember that public sector unions are fundamentally different from their private sector counterparts,” Comer also argued. “In fact, none other than Franklin Delano Roosevelt, a major champion of private sector unions, believed that public sector unions made no sense.”

Comer drew a distinction between labor negotiations in government and those in the private sector. “In the private sector, unions represent workers and sit across the bargaining table from representatives of business owners,” he said. “However, federal unions are not negotiating with a profit-seeking corporation. They are negotiating with the public’s elected representatives.”

Senate Outlook Remains Uncertain

The bill now heads to the Senate, where Republicans hold the majority. Even with some bipartisan support in the House, the effort faces a steep climb.

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Patrick Houck

Patrick Houck is an avid political enthusiast based out of the Washington, D.C., metro area. His expertise is in campaigns and the use of targeted messaging to persuade voters. When not combing through the latest news, you can find him enjoying the company of family and friends or pursuing his love of photography.

1 Comment
    Keith Clark

    Jus so long as the congress keeps stabbing American Taxpayers in the back……

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